The Past Warns Us that Our Future is Either Looking Good or Grim

When we think about what we would like to accomplish in life, we use the past as a barometer of what is possible for us to achieve. It may be a parent’s past revealed many times over, until you hope never to hear it again, that reminds you that if they could survive the bad old days, then your future should be fine, because everything has changed progressively since then. Or has it? Will the present young generation have a future where they can afford a starter house, build a family, and be comfortable, similar to the Baby Boomers?

The past reminds us of what needs to change for the future to be good for everyone. It is when changes don’t occur sufficiently to make a difference from one generation to the next that makes the future seem grim. We seek to determine what can be done today to modify the systems of government, religion, or education to ensure a great future for generations yet to be born.

Hopes, dreams, and aspirations for children and grandchildren live in the past, as we seek to give them a greater future. Parents work to ensure a better future for their children. When we observe the world today, as the rich get richer and the middle class joins the poor, we find ourselves asking what went wrong. Why are so many of our adult children still living at home, when we believed that we would be transitioning Thanksgiving Day events and seemingly endless work to them? Why are there so few empty nests these days, as there were in our parents’ generation, when we were so glad to get our first job and rent our first apartment?

I am an optimist, so I believe in the future because I believe the present generation will fight for their piece of the pie, just as the Boomers did 50 to 60 years ago. It’s just that when I look into the future today, I worry. But if the past teaches us nothing, it is that people will only allow their financial, social, and employment backs to be against the wall for so long before they come out fighting for a world they envision as fair to all. I hope to live to see it, but at 74, I may not. Yet, I keep believing in the resiliency of the human spirit.

Copyright ©
All posts on my blog, Help From Heaven, are my intellectual property protected by copyright. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express written permission from the author and/or owner of this blog is strictly prohibited.